Applekidjosh's CYOA
About the Author Applekidjosh. CYOA You're at the mall, finishing up some cinnabons when you realize it's getting much later than you thought it was. You know you're gonna be in trouble if you don't get home soon so you immediately get up and head out of the mall. Ahead of you are a few kids you know from school, but the only one you know by name is this kid Jake that's in your chem class. You've never seen the five of them together, but it's not like you go out of your way to notice. You're more of a "go home and hop on B8" kinda person. They all start walking down the street, apparently to go home. You should probably follow them. But... if you go that way, it'll take forever to get home. You'd never make it in time and you'd be in trouble for sure. And Mom did say if you were late one more time this month she was taking and hiding your computer's power cable... But the only alternative is going through the abandoned construction site between the mall and your house. You're never supposed to go through it cause it's dangerous. Lots of thugs and druggies go there at night, plus homeless people... you know the "right" thing to do is to take the long way home and accept the punishment. But... one little shortcut? Just this one time? You could make it home with a few minutes to spare if you hurry... A) Walk home the long way B) Go through the construction site You walk forward and into the construction site. It is very dark. There are a few overhead lights that are still on, but they are caked with dirt. The rest of the lights have been broken. There's no telling what this place was going to be before construction was suddenly stopped, but it's definitely a creepy place to be - especially at night. As you're briskly walking, keeping an eye out all around, you notice a sound in the distance. It's not too loud but it sounds sort of like a person gasping. There's nothing else after it. If you had to wager a guess, you'd say the voice was female... but that's about all you gathered. You look ahead of you. Just a few more minutes and you'd be through. You look to your left, where the sound came from. Is someone in trouble? Damnit... A) Go investigate the "person" B) Keep walking straight. Need to get home. You take one last look ahead, sigh, and accept that you're not gonna make it home by curfew. You turn left and run carefully ahead, yelling, "Is anyone here? Hello?" "...Help..." The voice was meek and quiet, but close. You turn the corner around a concrete slab and see a girl you know from school, Alyssa. She's a cute girl, she sits in front of you in math class. Now, though, she doesn't look so good. Her leg is twisted in a bad direction under a big root of a tree that was no longer here. She must have been running and gotten stuck. When she fell she had landed in a pile of glass, and her hands were bleeding from the impact. Her face was dirty as well. "...J...Jay? What are you do... nevermind, can you help me up?" You shake off the disbelief at this incredible situation and run over to help her. You help her dislodge her leg and stand her up. The leg is, at the very least, twisted - it could be broken. She's in a lot of pain, but is trying to be brave. You appreciate that... if she was crying or screaming it could draw a lot of weirdos. You decide to get her talking as you're helping her walk. You don't really know where she's supposed to be going, but you start walking toward your house again with her in tow. "Alyssa. Why were you here, alone? And why were you going so fast?" "...taking shortcut. Started... running. Cause I heard something and... ouch! agh... it was scary." "Well I don't really know where you live, but if you-" At that second you stop talking, interrupted by movement above you. Your eyes widen. Both of you stop moving and look up. Something just flew over your head... and with a CRASH! It landed about 100 yards away from you. A) Investigate! B) Ask Alyssa for her opinion C) Turn the hell around and get outta here "Alyssa, we have to go see what that was." "...Yeah. I guess you're right. Let's hurry." She leans on your shoulder even more and the two of you hurriedly close the distance between you and the mysterious object. The closer you get the more strange it looks. You don't want to jump to conclusions and say it's a space ship, but you can't shake the thought that it IS one. You turn to look at Alyssa - she's obviously scared. You realize as you find yourself standing in front of this... thing... that you must be scared too, because your hands are shaking uncontrollably. Suddenly a seam appears in the sleek surface of this, well for lack of a better word "ship." The seam widens and the outline of a door appears, and then opens. You and Alyssa stare with mouths open wide as the strangest thing you've ever seen comes into view. Your eyes refuse to believe this and you have to rub them to make sure you're not imagining something. Alyssa looks at you, as if to reassure herself she's not crazy. It really is... an alien. It's covered in blue fur and looks like a cross between a centaur and a scorpion. You're instantly reminded of the SNL skit with the Centaur, and a smile crosses your face... when the being seems to shudder and fall forward. don't have much time. Please listen. Alyssa jumped with surprise and you put your SNL thoughts to the back of your head. Alyssa asks, "Did you say that? It doesn't have... a mouth... so-" don't have time to properly explain, but rest assured that it is me. Elfangor-Sirinial-Shamtul is my name. I don't have much longer so please just stay calm and listen. A) Stay calm and do what the guy says B) Get the HELL out of here C) Ask Alyssa what to do "Don't worry. I'm staying. Tell us what we need to hear." Alyssa looks at you with surprise on her face. She's obviously wondering how you can be so calm, considering the situation. Well the the truth is you don't feel calm at all, but you have to pretend to for her sake. And, I guess, for the Alien's sake. The words start booming in your head again, out of nowhere. you. I am an Andalite, and you would call me an Alien. To put it simply, I'm one of "the good guys." The Yeerks are coming, and they are the "bad guys." We fought them... and lost. They will be coming for your planet now. No... for you humans. "Wait. So you're saying some aliens are going to destroy the world?" Alyssa asks. misunderstand. The Yeerks don't want to destroy you. They want... to take you. They are parasites. They take over host bodies and- Just then there is a boom above you that sounds like the sonic boom of a jet plane. You look up and see a few huge shapes looming in the sky, descending to your immediate area. only have a minute. He reaches behind himself and pulls out a blue cube. It doesn't look remarkable in any way, but you can't seem to take your eyes off it. the cube. Focus your mind on your own self, your body. You don't exactly have a choice, given the situation. You and Alyssa reach out an arm each and touch the cube. You don't know what the hell you're doing it for, but you picture your own body in your mind. Nothing impressive, should probably go the to gym more often. You start to feel a tingling sensation in your fingers, and before you know it, you are interrupted. is time. You both need to run. NOW. Alyssa takes a step toward Elfangor. "We can't just leave you like this. Those things that are coming... Yeerks... they are coming to take you, right?" is not your battle. I will not let them take me... alive. You have a more important part to play in this story. Both of you need to survive... and stop the Yeerks at any cost. This is the most important thing in the world. Now GO. He said "Go" with such a force that you both stepped back in surprise. With one last look up at the approaching spaceships, and a shake of your head at the sheer impracticality of this entire situation, you help Alyssa back onto your shoulder and both start scrambling away as fast as possible. You are close enough to the end of the construction site to see your house in the distance. Behind you, you can hear the spaceships have landed. You hear the faint sound of what must be some alien language. And then you make the mistake of turning around to see what is going on. Some huge alien monstrocity has Elfangor in its jaws. You can't tear your eyes away as he is devoured. At the last second, you hear very quietly in your mind... three... beware... careful. And then silence. A) Go back and try to fight! B) Continue on, help Alyssa home then go home yourself C) Abandon her and run for your life! You force yourself to turn away and continue on. After a few minutes you stop and listen, but it doesn't seem that you're being followed. You look back and all is still. The aliens are gone. You breathe a hefty sigh of relief. "Alyssa. Are you okay?" "...Yeah. Jay, this is for real, right? I can't think about this tonight." "No problem. Let me help you home." "You're joking, right? Jay, I live across the street from you..." You look at her with a face of confusion and surprise. "Uh... no way." "Wow. You REALLY need to pull yourself off the computer or whatever it is you do all day." So you and Alyssa make it to your neighborhood. You walk her to her door and she insists she'll be fine, and sends you off. You walk home. The house is silent. It appears your parents are asleep. A) Go straight to bed B) Check to see if parents are home C) Get on GameFAQs first You get the feeling something is up, you're dead tired, and you are more mentally tired than you have been in your entire life. All logic states that you should go immediately to bed. So you log into GameFAQs. You browse the front page... nothing special. It seems like Sir Chris is doing something to piss people off tonight or something. There are at least 4 topics involving some drama that you missed the beginning of. A) Make a topic about the night's crazy events B) Go to bed C) Check parents It gives you a bad feeling, but you can't deny this is a chance for some instant internet popularity. You start writing up the topic. You make yourself seem as awesome as possible, and write about how you saved this hot girl from school from some aliens. After you post the topic, you take a look back at the board. Same topics as before, more posts. You refresh and see you still have a 1 next to your topic. You refresh again and see a 1. You're about to give up when you refresh and see a 2. You click your topic and see a poster you don't recognize. Elemandora | Posted 3/29/2007 9:42:20 PM | message detail | #02 That's incredible. Expected Fresh Prince, but it wasn't there! Hey you don't know me but I go to your school. I'll see you at lunch tomorrow, you can tell me all about it! My name is Mark. "What a weirdo." you think to yourself. You'd have liked it better if the reply would have been a simple XD. It would have somehow validated your hope that everything was a dream. This reply just makes everything seem worse. A) Go to bed B) Check on parents first You close your Browser and shut off your monitor. You're so tired you have to use your fingers to hold your eyelids up until you slap yourself in the face to get a few minutes extra out of your body. Before going to sleep, you have to check on your parents. After everything that has happened you just have to make sure they're okay. You leave your bedroom and cross the hall. You open the door and peek into their dark bedroom. The bed looks fresh and clean, as if it hasn't been touched. There's nobody in it. You reach in and turn on the lights. "Mom? Dad?" No answer. "That's weird," you think. You close the door and stumble down the stairs, turning on lights as you go. You're not normally one to get scared of being alone in the house, but given everything that's happened tonight you can't help but feel a little chill. "Mom? Dad? ...MOM?!" The house is silent. You peer into the garage, the car is in there. You've checked every room. The car is there. The parents are not. This is weird. A) Think about it in the morning. Need sleep. B) Call your mom's cell phone. C) Check your gamefaqs topic I don't think I need to point out anymore just how tired you are. But it's just weird for your parents to be gone with the car here. You grab the phone from its cradle in the kitchen and dial your mom's number. She always carries her cell phone everywhere she goes, she's a freak about stuff like that. It rings. It keeps ringing. ...Nobody is picking up. Just before you're about to give up in frustration, the phone picks up. "Jay?" It's your mom's voice. You breathe a very audible sigh of relief. "Mom. Where are you? Are you okay? What's going on?" "Jay, calm down. Your father and I are out with some friends. I'll have to introduce you to them sometime soon." That's weird, you think. Out with friends? It's past 10 on a Thursday night... that doesn't sound like your parents at all. You decide you have to press the issue. "What friends Mom? I don't know them?" "Oh, no. We met them recently at this group called The Sharing. You haven't heard of it? You really need to get your head out of that computer. I'll bring you to the next meeting, you can meet some new friends!" "Uh... thanks Mom. Okay I'm really tired so I'm going to go to bed. Talk to you tomorrow... I guess." "Good night sweetie." You put the phone back. There was something very strange about that phone call, but you can't quite place it. Then you remember exactly what you've gone through, and no matter how strange your Mom sounded it couldn't be nearly as strange as the stuff earlier! But why didn't you tell your mom what happened, you wonder. The phone, of course. Over the phone is not the place to talk about that kind of stuff. You'll tell her everything tomorrow. Tomorrow... You snap your eyes open and realize you've almost fallen asleep standing up in the kitchen. It's not a minute past 10:30 but you are about to pass out. A) Go to bed. Finally. B) ...check that topic one more time... You drag yourself to your computer. Smack yourself for being an addict. Turn on your monitor and load up your active messages posted to see if you have any new replies. Your topic is gone... You click your name and get the System Notification. Your topic has been moderated. You go to see why, and it says Moderator Discretion. Weird. A) Go to bed. You wake up. It's really bad because you don't even remember getting to bed, must've been a rough night. You stumble out of bed and check the clock - not much time, gotta get to school soon. You throw on some new clothes and drag yourself downstairs to the kitchen. Pour a small bowl of cereal and start slopping it down. It's a very normal morning for a very normal person. "Mom must have left early today," you think, as you put your bowl in the sink. Only then do you remember standing right here last night, trying to call your mom. And the B8 topic. And Alyssa, the aliens, Elfangor... Oh God... You lose the strength in your legs and collapse onto the floor. What the hell have you been through? You have to do something, to call someone. The police. That's it. You pick up the phone. And it starts ringing. You press Talk. "...Hello?" "Jay! You answered too quickly. Did you call someone?!" "Who is... Alyssa? Is that you? What are you talking about?" "Jay, listen to me. Don't call anyone. Don't tell ANYONE about what happened last night. Just come to school. We can talk there." "Alyssa, you don't understand. We saw-" "JAY! SHUT UP. NOW. Just go to school." Click. The line is dead. A) Do what she says and just go to school. B) Forget about her, call someone (say who to call) You grab your backpack and hop on your bike, riding to school as fast as you can to take your mind off of everything. Your first classes go by in a blur, the first time you could possibly see Alyssa is at lunch and that's all you can think about. When lunch finally comes you sit down at a table alone, you don't even have an appetite. A minute later Alyssa appears and sits down next to you. She leans in close. "We need to go someplace private. Follow me and don't say anything." She stands up and leads you out of the cafeteria, back to the main school building. She turns off down a hallway and opens a classroom door, dragging you in behind her. The room is empty. Alyssa talks in a low voice. "Jay, first of all, did you tell anybody what happened?" "Uh... no. I was going to tell my mom but I didn't get the chance." "Good. Don't. I've been doing a lot of thinking about everything, especially what Elfangor said about them... you know... taking people over. We have no idea who is one of them. It could be the police, or the principal, or hell, even your mom." "Haha, that's great. My mom, an alien. I mean, I can't say I haven't thought about it in the past but-" "You don't get it! There is no way to tell. Of course the aliens would act just like the real people, they're trying to avoid suspicion and recruit more people. You can not deny the possibility that ANYONE could be one of them. Except for you and I, of course." You're not sure what to say. Then it dawns on you that you did in fact tell someone about what happened - Board 8. It's not quite the right time to mention that to Alyssa, though, she wouldn't understand. It's obvious Alyssa has a better grasp on what's going on than you do. You ask her, "So let's say everything is true. What in the world are we supposed to do about it? This is way out of our hands." She smiles. You can't believe it after all this... but she's actually smiling. "That, my friend, is where you are wrong," she says. You watch her smiling face as it begins to change. Her nose crunches up into her face and then the whole bottom of her face protrudes outward a bit, all the while her entire head is shrinking. You feel like you're about to vomit, and you're so surprised that even though you're trying to scream no sound is coming out. Her body shrinks rapidly until her clothes are just hanging on her, and her skin starts sprouting little marks all over it that point outward and extend - they are fur, apparently. Your eyes feel like they're about to bulge out of your head. It's been about a minute and a half of the most horrible thing you've ever seen... or at least, that you've seen since last night... and Alyssa has become a cat, apparently. She's a little housecat, complete with tail and whiskers and cute orange fur. We CAN do something. You have absolutely no idea how to react. None. You're definitely in shock. "A...Alyssa... You... What... Aaahhhh...." You sit. You can't really think of anything other than that to do. night when you were helping me run away, I looked back a few times more than you. I saw the one that got out to kill Elfangor. The one Elfangor called 'Visser Three'. He is the same as Elfangor, or at least, his body is. I guess he's a Yeerk just like all the other crazy aliens that came out of the ships. But anyway, I saw him - that is, Visser Three - I saw him change into that huge monster that ate Elfangor. You saw the monster. I saw him change into it. Speechless remains the only word to describe exactly how you feel, so you just continue listening. I knew that had to be what Elfangor had done to us with that blue cube. I don't know how I knew, it just came to me and felt so correct. Last night, I went home, and was petting my cat, and I don't even know why I did it or what came over me. I just touched her and thought about her the same way Elfangor had us think about ourselves, and after a few seconds she became a part of me... or something. And then when I thought about her in my mind, I started changing. It freaked me out at first too Jay, it's not just you. But somehow it just felt so natural, so right. Like I was born for this or something. I've never felt so good as I do when I'm a cat. It's AMAZING! Everything is your playground, you're a bundle of muscle and energy. "It doesn't... hurt?" "But what does this have to do with what you were talking about? We're supposed to, like, resist their invasion by turning into cats?" No. We can do this with ANYTHING Jay. Think about it. We might not be able to fight the Yeerks, but us as crazy dangerous animals? "..." A) Stay calm and agree to help Alyssa fight the aliens B) Get the hell out of there and forget about everything You decide to stay calm and trust her. You honestly don't know what else you could do right now. You answer, "What exactly do you propose we do then? It's the two of us against countless numbers of aliens that outgun us, and we can't trust anyone to help?" The cat in front of you seems to visibly droop a little, as if you just disappointed it. Right around now is when you realize how insane this would seem to anyone on the outside. You're talking to a cat... I don't know yet. I'm not sure what we can do. But we have to try, Jay. For Elfangor. Promise me you'll try? "...Yeah, alright. I promise. But you better get to figuring out what's going on and what we need to do about it. Call me when you know." I guess that's as good as can be expected. Thank you, Jay. Her cat body starts growing and extending outward, and then the fur retracts back into her skin so that she looks like a disgusting giant naked cat. It's like a train wreck, don't want to stare but you can't look away. Jay? I haven't... uh... would you mind looking away for a second? You look at her and ponder what she's talking about, then you realize that she's morphing back into herself... while standing on top of the outfit she was wearing. Alyssa was becoming human, but a naked human. You picture it in your mind, and think for the first time that Alyssa is a pretty good looking girl. This time, though, you figure it's in your best interest to turn away. There are always other chances to get an eyeful. You turn, and a minute later she taps you on your shoulder. She's fully dressed. She looks sort of embarassed. "Uh, I haven't figured out how to morph clothes yet. I tried, but it just doesn't work. I'll keep trying, okay?" You didn't want to tell her not to bother. She probably wouldn't take that too well. Instead you focus on the interesting word you hear her using. "Morph?" "Ah, yeah. Short for metamorphoses. That is basically what we're doing here, y'know?" You nod. "Morph." Sounds cool enough to you. You look at the clock and realize your lunch hour is half over. You say your goodbye to Alyssa and walk back to the cafeteria alone. If what she said was right, it's probably best not to draw too much attention to the fact that you guys are new friends. You sit back down at your lunch table and before you know what's happening a guy sits down across from you. He's short, overweight, and very geeky looking. "My name is Mark," he says, "and I want to tell you right now. Make a sound, or draw attention to yourself, and I will kill you." You just stare at him. "My real name, of course, is Estrit 402. I'm a Yeerk. Now like I said, stay calm." A) Attack him B) Stay calm and listen to what he says C) Run away Your eyes cross in anger as you look at the alien parasite in front of you. Elfangor would want you to do whatever you could, Alyssa had just talked you into fighting... so that's what you'll do. You grab your fork in your hand and raise your arm above your head... ...and a jolt of electricity runs through your body, starting with your leg. Your muscles seize up and you drop the fork. Your arms and head fall onto the table, slightly twitching. Your brain is running in hyperdrive, trying to figure out what happened. "You moron. I told you not to make a scene. I'm not your enemy... not here, not now. Are you going to listen to me? Or do I need to take more drastic measures to get my point across?" A) Listen to him B) Run away C) ...Keep fighting. Somehow. (describe how) You slowly regain the feeling in your arms and push yourself up. Your eyes are watering, so you rub them, then stare at the boy across the table. It's true, you really can't tell the Yeerks apart from regular humans. Crazy. He speaks again. "You've decided to calm down?" You nod. There's really not much for you to do. Come to think of it, this has been happening to you a lot lately... "Alright. Like I said, I'm a... ahem, Controller. A Human Controller. You don't know much about us, do you?" You shake your head no. "I'll tell you everything." The lunchroom was very noisy, so even though you were in plain sight there was no way anybody would find anything weird with two people talking. And nobody was close enough to pick up on any of the words that were being exchanged. You were safe, here in public. He begins. "The Yeerks are a parasitic race that travel through space looking for an effective species to take. In our natural state, we are useless... we have very limited senses and live horrible, boring lives. To a Yeerk, finding a host is like finding freedom. We see for the first time, we hear, we can touch and taste and speak. It's the most amazing feeling imaginable. That's our motivation." You have to interject. "What about the people you enslave?" He laughs a little. "At first, we weren't enslaving anyone. We took the Gedds, a species on our own planet. They were too stupid to know any better, barely sentient by any standards. It's just... once we had that little bit, we wanted more. Not me specifically you understand, this was before my time, but that is why the Yeerks expanded outward. We allied with the Taxxons, but they are a useless race because of their insatiable hunger. We took the Hork-Bajir, and while they make fantastic weapons, they are not adept at fine details. Humans, though... when we discovered you, it changed everything. You are perfect. There are billions of you, you can't resist us, and your have such wonderful senses and limbs." You interupt him, saying, "Why are you telling me all this?" He laughs again. His laugh is unsettling for some reason. "Because I'm different. Estrit 402 is a Yeerk that has discovered there is a better way to live. At first I took Mark forcibly, of course, but after acting as him for awhile I realized his life was more than I could have ever dreamed of before learning of humanity. To be honest, I'd forsake the Yeerk dream of expansion and defeating the Andalite scum if only I could sit at home, eat Pizza Rolls, and post on GameFAQs." You laugh. You laugh and you keep laughing, so hard that people around you start to stare, so hard your side starts hurting. As it's starting to wind down you look at Mark again and the laughs come again, picturing the evil aliens that are set to invade the earth posting on GameFAQs is just too much for you. Once you finally get settled down, you motion for him to continue, and try not to start giggling again. He does. "Jay, we have never really talked before, but this is Mark." You cock your eye in disbelief. "Yeah, he's right. We're cool now, me and Esty. He's given me knowledge of things I had never dreamed of, and I've shown him a better way to live. We share my body, and I don't really care. It's pretty awesome actually. I'm only telling you this so that you will listen to him. He's got something else to say, hold on." As you watch, Mark's eyes close for the shortest of seconds, then he opens them again as if he was himself. "Okay, this is Estrit. So you are going to fight the Yeerks, is that it? Is that what you've decided on?" You meekly nod your head yes. "And that girl you were just with, Alyssa is her name I think, is she like you?" Again, you nod. "It's just the two of you?" You freeze for a second... then nod again. "Well then at least let me tell you what you're up against. It's up to you whether you trust me and let me help you. But let me assure you, I don't want the Yeerks that are here now to succeed... well I'll explain in a minute. First the basics." You just listen as Estrit goes on and on, telling you everything he knows about the Yeerks. "And every three days a Yeerk must return to the Yeerk Pool and absorb Kandrona Rays that mimic our natural sun. We have to do this or we will starve to death. This is the greatest weakness of our race, and if you are going to attack us, this is how you will have to do it." "Alright," you say, "I understand the Yeerks. Now tell me what you meant when you said the Yeerks that are here." "Ah, heh. Well you've heard of Visser Three. He's the only Yeerk to have an Andalite host body, and with that, the morphing power. His strategy for Earth is to forcibly invade and take the human race by any means necessary. Visser One outranks him, and will not let him do that. Visser One is demanding a slow and stealthy infiltration, allowing as many voluntary Controllers as possible. They are easier to control, you see. I work for Visser One. I was originally sent here to be a bit of a spy. If Visser Three got his way, though, there would be no more Internet... and definitely no more Pizza Rolls. I can't allow that. So I'm helping you." "Well obviously I'll have to talk to Alyssa," you say, "but I guess you want an answer right now huh? If we're going to trust you or not?" He nods. He looks like he's ready to take either answer. You sort of get the vibe that he's glad that he's done this, and would be willing to stop here, but he'd also be willing to do a lot more for the cause. However... strange... that cause might be. A) Ask for Estrit and Mark's help B) Tell him you'll have to talk to Alyssa first C) Tell him you won't ally yourself with Yeerk scum As you're walking home from school, contemplating which animal you should use first, you notice several seagulls on the sidewalk ahead of you. They're hovering over a discarded Big Mac and Fries, apparently, there are probably six of them over there. You start to walk by them and they don't even take notice of you, since Seagulls aren't afraid of humans and you're using to ignoring them anyway. Then you smack yourself on the head for forgetting what you can do now. You turn toward the nearest one and squat down on your haunches. You reach out and touch him, he jumps a little but doesn't really pay attention to you - he's devouring french fries. You touch him again and this time you close your eyes and focus your mind on the form of the seagull. After a few seconds you feel him go limp and calm in your grasp... and then a few seconds after that, it's over. You stand up and walk away. You don't feel any different. You don't feel particularly seagullish. You hurry home to try out your new morph. By the time you get home it's 3:50, you don't even know where the time went. There is a note on your door. "Jay Talked to Mark. See you at 4:00. <3 Alyssa" A) Get walking to Mark's house B) ...morph, and fly there! Category: CYOA